Education letters

Browned off

Some comments on the Browne review:

As someone said, to have our children paying off the country's debt is such a bad thing that we all have to make sacrifices ... But to have our children going massively into personal debt to fund their education is a good thing?

dapperdanielle

• But it's not a debt, it's a tax, which only gets charged while you're earning a decent wage, and in a sustainable way. The financial argument is almost entirely in favour of getting a degree, so it's saddening that scary terms are used which put off students from the surest way to ensure a financially stable future.

candy88

• I detest the notion that creating a market in higher education will increase standards – how?

danhowells2010

• I was among the first to pay tuition fees and have a loan. At the time you may be annoyed, but as you grow up you realise:

1) Why should university be free? Why should the less academically inclined pay for the more academic to study?

2) It doesn't disproportionately affect people from poorer backgrounds at all. While I was at university, students from poorer households were actually better off as they had more money.

3) It is just an extra £70-£120 a month of your salary for life. If you believe education is important, look on this as a progressive tax in which the older generation pay money to the younger generation for university.

4) Lecturers are highly trained and expect decent salaries. Universities have buildings that must be maintained. Someone has to pay. Who should it be?

rabidraccoon

One happy ending

I want to thank Education Guardian for raising awareness about my predicament, and that of other students who had not got a place at university (Two As and a B and I had failed, 14 September). As a result of your article, King's College London contacted me and I was offered a place on their international studies foundation degree course.

I can't believe how lucky I have been. However, there are still thousands of students who also missed their offer and now face re-application for one of the toughest entry years. In addition, future students face the worry of increased fees following the Browne review. It infuriates me that students are going to be put at a disadvantage in life.

Amy Halsall London

Cruel cuts

We fully endorse the points made by Peter Davies about the threats to adult education (The Cruel Sea, 12 October). The prime minister and ministers in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills have all indicated their strong understanding of the value of lifelong learning, which provides a second chance to succeed for many, offers life changing opportunities for some of the most disengaged people, and contributes to economic regeneration, for example by moving people off benefits into work and reducing the burden on social care. Decisions about savings must ensure that opportunities for affordable adult education for the less well-off are not irretrievably damaged and lost.